Empty Phrase

June 13, 1987

IF ALL the months of congressional hearings concerning the Iran-contra scandal should come to an end without some major participant having his nose vigorously rubbed in the excreta, it will be a farcical travesty of justice and a disgrace.

Lt. Col. Oliver North, at the very least, should be stripped of his rank, dishonorably discharged and should forfeit all potential pension rights. His actions, categorized by some as patriotism and subservience to President Reagan, were motivated entirely by an obsessive conviction in his own single- minded interpretation of a perceived communist threat. He acted as if he was solely qualified to take steps to combat this largely conjectural menace.

If North is permitted to go scot-free, the words ''honesty in government'' will be an empty phrase.